Elemental

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A Secret Cravings Publishing Book

Mainstream
Romance

Elemental

Copyright
© 2013 Serena Pettus

E-book ISBN: 978-1-61885-744-6

First
E-book Publication: June 2013

Cover
design by
Dawné
Dominique

Edited
by E.L. Felder

Proofread
by Rene Flowers

All
cover art and logo copyright © 2013 by Secret Cravings Publishing

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This
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All
characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual
persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

PUBLISHER

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Cravings Publishing

www.secretcravingspublishing.com

DEDICATION

I would like to dedicate this book to my family. They have supported me in
my pursuit of a writing career, and it means the world to me!

I love you guys!

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ELEMENTAL

Serena Pettus

Copyright
© 2013

Chapter One

Sitting
alone in a small campus café was no fun at all. Watching the other college
students milling about, talking animatedly about their holiday plans and all of
the last minute shopping they still had to do was starting to wear on her. Add
to that the depressing thought of spending the holidays alone—again—and you had
the makings of a good pity party. Mandy Wright knew there was no help for it
though. No money in the bank meant she would be pulling extra shifts over the
holiday break to pad her account for the coming semester.

Speaking
of the coming semester, her textbook was still lying on the table before her,
yet she hadn’t managed to read a single page. Mandy was working on a double
major in Mythology and History, and was always looking for ways to get ahead if
possible. She was just beginning the first paragraph in the chapter when a
shadow fell over her table.

“So
what are your plans for the holidays?” Ah, there was that familiar Romanian
accent she loved!

Mandy
raised her head from her textbook to regard her dear friend. Sadly, she had no
family to spend the holidays with. She’d never known her parents, having been
abandoned at a hospital as an infant, and her foster parents weren’t exactly
winners either. As soon as she’d turned eighteen, and the state funding for
foster care discontinued, they had no further use for her. As for the holidays,
she spent those alone. She always had.

“I
don’t have any plans really,” she replied, breaking away from his intense gaze.
Geez, just saying it aloud amplified the loneliness that she’d been feeling
more keenly lately.

Jonathan
Mondragon had a strong presence that was difficult to ignore. In truth, he
intimidated and awed her all at once. He was known on campus as the “sexy
foreign god” by the women and as the “go-to-guy” for the men.

They
had met in one of her Mythology courses when they were paired up for an
assignment last year, and ever since that time, he’d become a very dear friend.

“You’ll
come home with me, then.”
A very pushy friend as well.
“I want you to meet my brother.”

Again
with the brother.
Jonathan seemed hell-bent on the two of
them meeting for some reason. “You know I can’t do that, Jonathan,” she chided,
“I need to work, and I intend to get ahead on next semester’s classes if
possible.”

 
“You need a break, Mandy.” He was always
scolding her about how hard she worked.

Mandy
sighed, “You know I have to work, Jonathan. I don’t have the luxury of a
scholarship and I’m close to having my tuition for the coming term, but I need
to work these next two weeks to wrap it up.” She watched him wince and braced
herself, knowing that if he was dreading what he was about to say, then she
probably wouldn’t like it either.

“Now
don’t get mad,” he began, “but I’ve spoken to your boss and managed to have
your shifts covered for the break.”

Mandy’s
head spun. She felt ill. Good grief, she needed that holiday pay to finish off
the last of her payments for this term. “You what?” she shrieked. “Jonathan,
you know I’m broke! I can’t afford to take time off just because it’s a
holiday…” Her words died on a gasp as he slid a bank deposit receipt across the
small café table.

Mandy
stared, unbelieving, at the small piece of paper.
“How?
When? Why?” She couldn’t believe the balance showing in her account. There had
never been that many zeros on that side of the decimal point before!

“I
want you to take a break, Mandy. You’re wearing yourself down.” His beautiful
obsidian eyes captured hers and held her captive. It was impossible for her to
deny him anything when he looked at her like that. His eyes reflected a
loneliness he rarely allowed to show, yet she’d sensed it often. Sensed it,
because it mirrored
her own
. “You’re coming with me to
my home. I need you to come with me today to have your passport expedited as
well.”